MEMORANDUM OPINION
MARVEL,
This is an appeal from respondent's determination upholding the use of a levy to collect petitioners' unpaid Federal income tax liabilities for 2000, 2001, and 2002. Petitioners resided in California when the petition was filed.
Respondent determined deficiencies, additions to tax, and penalties with respect to petitioners' 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002 Federal income tax and issued a notice of deficiency for those years. In response petitioners timely filed a petition with the Court at docket No. 22876-04 disputing respondent's determination. Appeals Officer Kevin Foist (Appeals Officer Foist) was assigned to review petitioners' case at docket No. 22876-04. On June 15, 2005, Appeals Officer Foist met with two of petitioners' representatives, Robert A. Concolino (Mr. Concolino) and an unenrolled representative. At 2008 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 209">*210 the meeting petitioners' representatives requested a full abatement of interest and penalties. Appeals Officer Foist responded that "it was unlikely that the interest would ever be abated."
On August 5, 2005, Appeals Officer Foist sent Mr. Concolino a letter enclosing a proposed decision document in docket No. 22876-04. The letter stated: If you owe the Internal Revenue Service, the enclosed decision document does not include interest. By law, interest accrues from the due date of the return.
The letter also enclosed a statement estimating the total penalties and interest if petitioners paid the deficiencies by June 30, 2005 (June 30, 2005, statement).
On August 15, 2005, petitioners signed the proposed decision document in docket No. 22876-04. On September 26, 2005, the Court entered the decision in docket No. 22876-04 (stipulated decision). In the stipulated decision, the Court ordered and decided that petitioners were liable for Federal income 2008 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 209">*211 tax deficiencies, additions to tax, and
On February 27, 2006, respondent assessed the deficiencies, additions to tax, penalties, and interest for 2000-02 2 in accordance with the stipulated decision. On April 11, 2006, Mr. Concolino sent Appeals Officer Foist a check dated March 13, 2006, for $ 139,979.80, representing "the total amount as set forth on the Decision of the United States Tax Court dated September 26, 2005". The amounts set forth in the stipulated decision consisted of the tax deficiencies, additions to tax, and penalties for 1999-2002, but not interest. Appeals Officer Foist acknowledged receipt of the check.
On June 17, 2006, respondent sent petitioners a Final 2008 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 209">*212 Notice of Intent to Levy and Notice of Your Right to a Hearing (notice) in which respondent stated his intent to levy to collect petitioners' unpaid 2000, 2001, and 2002 tax liabilities. 3 Petitioners timely submitted Forms 12153, Request for a Collection Due Process Hearing, for those years, which stated only that the "amount due was paid".
On January 10, 2007, petitioners participated in a face-to-face
On January 10, 2007, Appeals Officer Peck sent petitioners a letter explaining that the parties had agreed to the penalties in the stipulated decision and that the decision contained an acknowledgment that interest would be assessed. She also explained that petitioners could not request a redetermination 2008 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 209">*213 of the interest because they did not file a timely motion for redetermination of interest under
On April 16, 2007, respondent sent petitioners a Notice of Determination Concerning Collection Action(s) Under
On April 17, 2008, we issued petitioners a notice setting their case for trial during the Court's September 22, 2008, Los Angeles, California, trial session. On July 23, 2008, respondent filed the motion for summary judgment. On August 20, 2008, petitioners filed their response.
I.
Summary judgment is a procedure designed to expedite litigation and avoid unnecessary, time-consuming, and expensive trials.
II.
Following a hearing, the Appeals Office must determine whether the proposed levy action may proceed. The Appeals Office is required to take into consideration: (1) Verification presented by the Secretary that the requirements of applicable law and administrative procedures have been met, (2) relevant issues raised by the taxpayer, and (3) whether the proposed levy action appropriately balances the need for efficient collection of taxes with a taxpayer's concerns regarding the intrusiveness of the proposed levy action.
Petitioners' only argument throughout the section 6330 hearing process was directed to the interest assessed in connection with the 2000-02 income tax deficiencies, additions to tax, and penalties. Petitioners allege in their petition that with regard to interest the respondent "failed to correctly apply * * * the Internal Revenue Code in his determination to assess the liability against the taxpayer", and they allege in their Forms 12153 only that the "amount due was paid".
We generally lack jurisdiction to determine the appropriateness of the interest computed under
In their objection to respondent's motion for summary judgment, petitioners argue that they are entitled to an abatement of interest under
The undisputed facts establish that during the section 6330 hearing process petitioners did not propose a collection alternative or otherwise submit any financial information from which Appeals Officer Peck could have evaluated potential collection alternatives. The undisputed facts also establish 2008 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 209">*221 that, after reviewing the administrative record and determining that the requirements of
We conclude on the record before us that there is no genuine issue of material fact requiring a trial, and we hold that respondent is entitled to the entry of a decision sustaining the proposed levy as a matter of law.
1. All Rule references are to the Tax Court Rules of Practice and Procedure, and all section references are to the Internal Revenue Code.↩
2. We assume that respondent also assessed petitioners' 1999 tax liability (including the addition to tax, penalty, and interest), but we do not have a Form 4340, Certificate of Assessments, Payments, and Other Specified Matters, for 1999 in the record.↩
3. The notice does not cover 1999 presumably because respondent applied petitioners' payment to satisfy the 1999 tax liability in full.↩
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7. In their objection to respondent's motion, petitioners allege only that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) failed to provide them with a specific payoff amount after the stipulated decision was entered and that the IRS waited approximately 2 months after petitioners made their $ 139,979.80 payment to attempt to collect interest. Even if we treat petitioners' request as a sec. 6404 abatement claim and we accept these statements as true for purposes of the summary judgment motion, they are insufficient to support a claim for abatement under